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First boat detailing questions

As you can see the boat has lost its shine, so I was looking to restore its shine a little bit. Does not have to be a mirror finish or anything. I know people say you shouldn't do this as you are removing the oxidation layer that protects the aluminium underneath, but surely it can't hurt the boat that much? And surely a regular coating/application of sealant could protect it from further oxidation?

Also I was going to clean and wax the outboard to protect it from sun damage, any recommendations on products to use for this? Was just going to use the Ultimate Liquid Wax that I use on my car, but not sure if I should or not.

Re: First boat detailing questions

Welcome to Meguiar's Online! So there are really a couple different ways to look at this. If this is an un-coated aluminum, the use of a metal polish, compound or potentially even a mild cleaner/wax product will potentially significantly change the look of this boat into a very high polished appearance, almost like chrome. From my experience it is kind of tough to get somewhere in between.

We do have products in our Marine/RV Line which are intended to clean this type of surface but are also intended only to brighten, not necessarily polish it up to a high gloss, which in many cases is preferred. Information on these products can be referenced at the following below links: